Subscribe
Follow Us
The Boston Red Sox take on the Baltimore Orioles in Williamsport, Pa. Check out our MLB odds series for our Red Sox Orioles prediction and pick.
Nick Pivetta goes to the bump for the Red Sox, while Dean Kremer takes the ball for the Orioles.
Nick Pivetta has a 4.28 ERA. He has been all over the place this season. In both April and July, his one-month ERA was over eight runs. In May and June, his ERA was under 2.30. In August, Pivetta has pitched to an ERA of exactly three runs in three starts. In his most recent outing, he shut out the Pirates in seven strong innings. He has been wildly unpredictable, but not in individual starts; Pivetta has been sharply different on a month-to-month basis. In August, he has been good, so the pattern of his season suggests that he'll do well here on Sunday Night Baseball.
Dean Kremer pitched a very strong game against the Blue Jays last week. His season has been a smaller-scale version of Pivetta's, a true roller-coaster. Kremer pitched to a 1.29 ERA in his first month of the season in June. In July, opponents figured him out and he posted an ERA just under seven runs. In three August starts, Kremer has pitched to a 2.84 ERA. As noted against the Blue Jays, he pitched a very strong game. He went seven innings and allowed only two runs. That will play.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Red Sox-Orioles MLB odds.
MLB Odds: Red Sox-Orioles Odds
Boston Red Sox: -1.5 (+150)
Baltimore Orioles: +1.5 (-182)
Over: 8.5 (-118)
Under: 8.5 (-104)
Why The Red Sox Could Cover the Spread
The Red Sox are desperate, playing to stay in the American League wild card race. They're coming off a good, tough 4-3 win over Baltimore on Saturday and have Nick Pivetta pitching well at the moment. The season has not gone the way the Red Sox hoped or expected, but a big late-season push can rescue them. They're certainly banking on that, and they'll come to Williamsport feeling good after the Saturday win they absolutely had to have.
Why The Orioles Could Cover the Spread
Dean Kremer has been pitching well for Baltimore this season, including the past few weeks. He did have a rough July, but teams and teammates want to see how guys respond to adversity. Kremer has done well in that regard. That builds respect in the clubhouse and gives players confidence on the diamond. The Orioles didn't play well on Saturday, but they have fought back all year, and this game should be no different. You should see Baltimore play a better baseball game on Sunday night.
What also has to be said here is that Baltimore has quietly developed one of the better bullpens in the American League. The Orioles, when they do get a lead going into the seventh inning, very rarely give it up. With Adley Rutschman playing like a rookie of the year, this pitching staff is not going to go awry very often.
Final Red Sox-Orioles Prediction & Pick
This game is viewed as close to a toss-up, and it should be. The Williamsport environment means hitters will not have a familiar hitting backdrop. This game isn't really a normal game because of the venue change, making it like the Field of Dreams Game. It's a stay-away game. If you insist on a pick, take the O's plus the run and a half.
Final Red Sox-Orioles Prediction & Pick: Orioles +1.5
